Annapurna Sanctuary Trekking

Once we complete the arrangements for the trek, we start the day with a drive from Kathmandu to Pokhara. It takes around 6 – 7 hours. It is a scenic route with the green fields, rivers, traditional villages along the way. We reach Pokhara in the evening and enjoy in the restaurants and pubs in the lakeside area.

We start the day by waking early in the morning and taking a Jeep ride from Pokhara to Ulleri. As we know, Ulleri is a large Magar village with unique cultures. We make a gentle climb, through forests of oaks and rhododendrons, to reach Banthanti at 2250 m. Then the trail reaches Nange thanti (2460m) and then after an hour to Ghorepani. Ghorepani is a traditional village with wonderful panoramic views of Annapurna South and Nilgiri. The people welcome us with warm hospitality and unique cultures. We can buy souvenirs in the shops here. We stay here overnight.

The main highlight of the day is the top of Poon Hill, one of the best vantage points in Nepal. The views of the mountains turning golden with the first rays of the sun are exquisite. We start the hike early and reach Poon hill in about 45 minutes. Then we enjoy the views of Annapurna, Dhaulagiri, Pokhara valley as well as Mustang. Then, we trek back to Ghorepani. After breakfast, we move east and climb a ridge. Then we descend through forests and waterfalls to finally reach Tadapani. We spend the night here.

The trail descends through a rhododendron forest and then opens to beautiful terraced fields. We make an uphill climb and pass through waterfalls and a suspension bridge. A few more uphill and downhill treks and we reach our destination, Chhomrong.

We trek down to Chhomrong khola and then continue our climb to Khudighar. We cross stone steps and a suspension bridge to reach Sinuwa Danda where we have lunch. We pass through rhododendron and bamboo forests and sloppy cliffs and finally reach Dovan.

From Dovan, we pass through dense forests with many waterfalls. Slowly, the beautiful mountain vistas come into view as we visit the Hinko cave and Barahi temple. We reach Deurali after a while and get to see Mt. Fishtail ridge and interesting wildlife if the weather is clear. We stay here overnight.

The leveled trail past old avalanche debris finally enters Annapurna sanctuary. After a while, we reach Machchhapuchhre Base camp. We see Annapurna South, Annapurna I, Annapurna III, Himchuli, Gandharvachuli, and Gangapurna mountains from here. From the base camp, we turn left and ascend gently to Annapurna Base camp. After a steady walk to acclimatize, we cross a gorge to finally reach the Annapurna Base camp. We can see Annapurna, Dhaulagiri, Fishtail and Himchuli mountains from here.

From the exquisite Base camp, we trace our way back to Bamboo along Modi River Bank. We take an easy descend with the changing shapes of the mountains. There are few loose trails as we continue towards the tranquil viewpoints. We finally reach Sinuwa where we stay overnight.

We descend through forests to Chhomrong Khola and retrace our steps to Chhomrong. Then we make our way across Jhinu Danda with a hot spring along the bank of Modi River. We follow the river bank to reach Kyumi River Bridge where we can spot monkeys, deer, and butterflies. Finally, we reach the Gurung village of Ghandruk. The village is a heaven with beautiful terraced fields, unique cultures, and glistening mountains. It is a warm experience to spend the night in the cultural village of the Gurkhas.

On the last day of the trek, we drive to Pokhara Airport from Ghandruk village which takes about 2 and a half hours and then we take a short flight back to Kathmandu to end our trek.